Man faces charges of assaulting deputy

Samuel L. Latona, 26, of Hanover Terrace, was intoxicated when he was seen walking in the roadway at Jefferson Street and U.S. 15 at about 1 a.m., the Frederick County Sheriff's Department alleged.

A vehicle almost hit Latona, police said.

Police said Latona refused to comply with Deputy 1st Class Rudy Torres' request to stop and walk to the patrol car. Then he threw his arms out and lunged at Torres, police alleged.

At 9 a.m., Latona had not yet appeared before a district court commissioner for a bond hearing, a court employee said.

Dealer's license plate reported stolen

HALFWAY - A dealer's license plate was stolen from Hagerstown Ford on Massey Boulevard, according to a report to the Washington County Sheriff's Department on Wednesday. The plate number was 1A64331.

Boy remains in critical condition after fall

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - A 10-year-old boy who fell down a shaft in an old grain processing facility in Charles Town remained in critical condition at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., Thursday, a hospital spokesman said.

Rescue officials said the boy had climbed to the top of a building at People's Supply at the corner of Samuel and North streets Tuesday when he apparently slipped into an elevator shaft and fell about 45 feet.

To reach the boy, rescue officials had to climb a ladder to the top of the building then climb down the shaft.

Autopsy planned for woman found hanged

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - Police said Thursday an autopsy would be conducted on a woman to determine how she died in an area nursing home.

The woman was found hanged by her neck Wednesday night in a bathroom at the IHS Nursing Home along W.Va. 115 east of Charles Town, said Charles Town Police Chief Mike Aldridge.

A long hose from a shower extension was wrapped around the woman's neck, Aldridge said.

Aldridge said Thursday there are a number of scenarios that might explain the woman's death, but investigators were having a difficult time pinpointing one.

Investigators had said Wednesday night they might have to rely on an autopsy to determine if foul play was involved in the woman's death.

"Obviously, we're doing all the checking we can," said Aldridge.

Charles Town Police were notified of the woman's death at about 8:15 p.m. Wednesday. The woman was found by a nursing home employee when she walked into the bathroom, Aldridge said.

W.Va. trooper involved in car accident

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - A West Virginia State Police trooper involved in a Monday afternoon car accident was not injured and not at fault, police said.

Trooper J.D. Burkhart was on a call for a report of a man with a gun at around 3:45 p.m. Monday when the collision happened, according to West Virginia State Police Sgt. Deke Walker.

Donna Lamp, 46, of Martinsburg, pulled onto W.Va. 9 from Mount Olive Road and hit the side of Burkhart's marked car, Walker said. Burkhart had his lights and siren on.

Lamp, who was driving a 2002 Ford Mustang, was charged with failure to yield right-of-way. She was not injured, Walker said.

Burkhart's cruiser was not totaled and will be repaired, Walker said.

The man with a gun was a juvenile, who was arrested and released to the custody of his parents, Walker said.

Former fire company member charged

FREDERICK, Md. - A four-month investigation into the theft of approximately $26,000 in fire and rescue equipment led Thursday to the arrest of a former fire company volunteer and employee of Frederick County Fire and Rescue Services.

Michael Anthony Martinez, 23, of 2 Pennsylvania Ave. in Walkersville, Md., was being held on $50,000 bond Thursday night at the Frederick County Detention Center, deputies from the Frederick County Sheriff's Department said.

A lead was developed in mid-October related to the sale of a Motorola pager on an Internet auction site, deputies said.

As the investigation progressed, deputies traced breathing apparatus, spare air bottles, radio components and pagers through the eBay/Internet auction site. Each buyer was contacted and proper identification through serial numbers was provided, deputies said.